Business Directories

New Ithmaar shares set for trading

Manama , January 27, 2008

Shamil Bank shareholders will be able to trade new shares of Ithmaar Bank on the Bahrain Stock Exchange from Monday.

Ithmaar has taken over its smaller affiliate and de-listed its stocks.

Shamil Bank, now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ithmaar Bank, will retain its current brand name but is no longer listed as a public shareholding company on the BSE.

The industry and commerce ministry and other authorities recently approved the acquisition through a share swap, in which every 10 shares held by minority shareholders in Shamil Bank were exchanged for 12 shares in Ithmaar Bank.

At a milestone Extraordinary General Meeting held in November, Ithmaar shareholders approved the issuance of 734,499,970 new shares, including 288,000,000 bonus shares that went to existing Ithmaar shareholders, with the remainder swapped for Shamil Bank shares.

Both institutions are members of the Ithmaar banking group.

"Operating under the Ithmaar umbrella, Shamil Bank will be able to further strengthen its presence in the market and make new inroads into the region's booming Islamic banking and finance industry," said Shamil Bank chief executive and board member Mohammed Hussain.

"This is an important step in consolidating the group and improving the synergy among its various members. Ithmaar Bank's acquisition of Shamil Bank will strengthen the Ithmaar banking group as a whole and enable it to continue to deliver consistent, positive returns to shareholders," he added.